Mitsubishi Ralliart Concept Teased Ahead Of January 2022 Reveal

After being on a hiatus for more than a decade, Ralliart officially returned this year in the form of… purely cosmetic tweaks. That's certainly not what we were hoping for, but there is a glimmer of hope as Mitsubishi is now teasing a new Ralliart concept car. Premiering next month at the Tokyo Auto Salon 2022 in Japan, the mysterious showcar aims to deliver the "engineering and passion for Monozukuri challenges (craftsmanship)."

While that's not saying much, we do have a teaser image depicting a good chunk of the vehicle's rear bumper with a sporty diffuser adorned by the Ralliart logo. Reminiscent of a Formula 1 car's fog light, those center-mounted vertical LED strips could be for the fog light. Thin red reflectors are also visible, as is a sculpted bumper signaling something with a bit of aggression.

Ok, but what exactly are we looking at? Well, the absence of a visible exhaust tip leads us to believe it will be fully electric. If it had been a vehicle equipped with a combustion engine, it would've made sense for Mitsubishi to install beefy exhaust finishers to accentuate the sporty nature of its concept car. That said, a rumor from August talked about a Ralliart-spec Outlander PHEV, so we'll just have to wait and see what's what.

Also coming to the Tokyo Auto Salon will be the Kei EV concept, a production-intent electric vehicle "founded on safety, security, and comfort, as well as environmental friendliness." Marketing fluff aside, the pint-sized electric car will be going on sale in The Land of the Rising Sun during the next fiscal year (April 2022 to March 2023).

Developed together with Nissan, the zero-emissions kei car will cost approximately $18,000 after taking into consideration applicable EV subsidies. The tiny electric hatchback was previewed by Nissan's IMk concept from 2019 and is believed to have a maximum range of 124 miles (200 kilometers). Having to comply with kei car rules, it mustn't be longer than 3.4 meters (134 inches), wider than 1.48 meters (58.2 inches), and taller than two meters (78.7 inches). As for power, it mustn't exceed 63 hp (47 kW).

It should be noted this won't be Mitsu's first electric kei car as the i-MiEV sold in Japan also complied with the segment's regulations while doing without the combustion engine.